STATE WRESTLING: Reisetter battles all the way back, claims fourth

February 17, 2013

DES MOINES - East Marshall/GMG coach Troy Underhill said the biggest change Jay Reisetter went through during the offseason was a bit of an attitude adjustment. The Mustang senior just needed to believe he could do it.

That may be how Reisetter was able to go from going 0-2 in 2012 to a placewinner this year at the Iowa High School State Wrestling Championships.

After losing his first match this week, Reisetter cruised through his opponents to reach the third-place match. And even though he eventually lost the bout to top-ranked Jacyn Goebel of West Delaware on Saturday afternoon, Reisetter was content on how far he climbed this season.

"It feels great, and I hardly slept last night coming into these placing matches," he said. "It's unexplainable. This was for my dad. He just kept pushing me and I wouldn't be where I am right now without my dad."

Reisetter lost to Goebel 7-2 but it was a 2-all match late in the third period until a reversal and three back points put the match away for Goebel, who ended his season at 46-2.

"I was hoping to wear him down late in the match, and I thought I needed to get something going," Reisetter said. "It just went the other way. But I can't be upset with a fourth-place finish."

Underhill said the match could have gone either way.

"It was a scramble mode, and he was on the lower end of that situation, but he could have very well came out on top," Underhill said.

Reisetter lost five times this season. He dropped two against guys who were ranked No. 1 at the time of the defeat, lost another to a second-ranked opponent and then lost twice to No. 3 ranked grapplers.

"It was a successful season," Underhill said. "He had some big wins and his losses were to highly ranked guys."

Reisetter came into the tournament ranked seventh but climbed to the fourth position on the podium Saturday night. That is something that he would never have imagined.

"It will probably hit me during the Grand March," Reisetter said. "I have been in the stands and seen that so many times but never been a part of it. It is a pretty cool scene."

Reisetter beat Humboldt's Nikko Wheeler by fall in his first match of the day. The Mustang senior led 5-0 after one period following a takedown and three near-fall points.

Wheeler cut the lead to 5-3 early in the second with an escape and a takedown. Reisetter then escaped and scored another takedown to regain the five-point cushion.

Seconds later, and with 9 seconds to go in the second frame, Reisetter put Wheeler on his back and ended it with a fall.